Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Let's not get too distracted by the fact that the FBI is investigating Andy Stern!!

We have an election here, people! In fact, we have a new election at Kaiser for 2000 more Kaiser workers!

On October 18th, Nor Cal Optical workers, Mental Health professionals and Medical Social Workers will have their chance to vote for NUHW!

Oh, man. It must stink to be SEIU staff. The hits just keep coming...

By the way--Andy is denying the allegations. And his pal Republican former lawmaker Alan Simpson defended Andy: Simpson criticized “any person who uses an anonymous blog” to make assertions. Such a person “is a jerk, or a bonehead or a boob,” he said.

He better not be referring to Tasty, who got his information the old fashioned way: he read it on the AP's website! And the Associate Press (known for years of reporting excellence) wrote a story that cited TWO union officials who spoke with the FBI.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Why won't Andy Stern just go away? Because the FBI won't let him! That's right, boys and girls, according to the Associated Press, the FBI is investigating Andy Stern...Why?

Remember now disgraced and "retired" AnnelleGrajeda's boyfriend the now disgraced and jailed Alejandro Stevens? Well, the FBI suspects that Stern knew that Alejandro was getting paid off by the union for a no-show assignment, as well as keeping his job working for the local government.

And remember Stern's book "A Country that Works?" According to the AP: "One person who spoke to federal agents twice, in May and June, said they asked about a 2006 contract in which Stern received a $175,000 advance from Simon & Schuster to write the book "A Country That Works." The SEIU and its locals bought thousands of copies of the book after it was published. The union also paid thousands to fact-check and promote the book, but Stern pocketed the advance."

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Last Friday, SEIU ordered hundreds of staffers and out-of-state temp workers back into their rental cars to knock on Kaiser workers' doors. Xperezroselli posted this cartoon to capture the scene that's playing out across California. Check out the house visitor struggling with his vest in the picture to the left. (Fleece vest in LA?)

So why is SEIU knocking on your door again? Tasty hears that SEIU's DC officials have become extremely nervous as they've watched a growing wave of support for NUHW. Readers might remember that, at the beginning of the three-week voting period, SEIU officials spent millions of dollars on a 10-day house-visit blitz by thousands of out-of-state staffers, TruCorps workers, and even laid-off U.S. Census workers. Apparently, SEIU expected that massive blitz to lock down an election victory.

Friday, September 24, 2010

This is a picture of Gary Brooks, who is an NUHW member from Fontana who SEIU pays to travel around and talk about how terrible being an NUHW member is.

This pic was taken in the lobby of the Kaiser Downey Med Center today. SEIU dues dollars hard at work. The thing the Kaiser workers don't understand is why if NUHW is so bad that they have to pay someone to come all the way from Irvine when 220 current NUHW members work at Downey every day and should be willing to share their terrible experiences for free.

Looks like Gary is really excited about his gig for SEIU, since he is SLEEPING on the job...

Thursday, September 23, 2010

It's become quite clear that SEIU has chosen some real standout staffers to try to recruit votes at Kaiser facilities. Along with Jake the iPhone Stalker from Chicago and Brian "the Morning Masturbator" from Portland, there's Hector Abreu from New York, aka "Hector the Inspector."

Hector, a staffer from SEIU Local 32BJ, was sent to Kaiser Santa Rosa for two months to recruit votes for SEIU. By all accounts, Hector is not doing so well.

In fact, workers report that a huge super-majority of workers at Santa Rosa are voting for NUHW. Perhaps this has something to do with Hector's volatile character, which swings from bullying and intimidation to sexual harassment and slime.

Apparently, Hector has made a real name for himself by telling Kaiser employees that he has a real fondness for "juicy women" and by trying to invite numerous female workers out on dinner dates. I guess this is what happens at SEIU, where everyone from trustees to TruCorps sees members as a dues base and dating pool. (Right, Dave?).

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

In 2007, this group organized a grassroots campaign to reform the SEIU Local 1000.After years of methodical and systematic campaigning for reform, it was clear that SEIU Local 1000 is ineffective at representing its members, and irreparable.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Last week the SEIU steward at Kaiser Oakland's ER decided that he was going to vote for NUHW. He didn't wear red, he didn't stop doing his job as a steward, he just had some conversations with his co-workers and decided to vote for NUHW, not SEIU.

And when SEIU found out--they had him removed as a steward. Big mistake, according to sources, Bill is well liked and well respected at work. His coworkers made this flier to share the news of SEIU's "intimidation."

________________________________________________

Sept. 17

ED’s BILL HENDRIX,

ELECTED STEWARD, REMOVED BY SEIU

It’s An Outrage!

SEIU just removed another elected shop steward, ED’s

Bill Hendrix. Bill is an LVN. He worked at Kaiser since 2002. His staff elected him as their representative. When Bill showed interest in NUHW, SEIU defied the ER voters. Call it voter intimidation.

Elected shop stewards are the backbone of union strength.

They serve us without pay. Stewards file grievances, negotiate with managers, and heal our differences. The removal of Bill is part of a campaign to dismantle the democratic structures that made our union strong. Without our consent, even without our input,

SEIU has already removed hundreds of elected stewards. A hundred rank-and-file e-board members were dumped. SEIU leaders spit on our elections, now they want our vote.

Bill put it this way: As a steward, “I felt I have had no backing from SEIU. Everytime that there was a disagreement with management over fair treatment of my members, I had to fight SEIU to gain support. SEIU runs the union as a dictatorship.”

Brothers and sisters, if Barbara Lee were removed from office by dictate, would we remain silent? How can we, in self-respect, vote for leaders who destroyed our tolerant,democratic union. It’s Bob Marley time: “Get up, stand up, stand up for your rights.”

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Check out this hilarious prank email that was forwarded to Tasty. A reader decided to try to find out how many staff SEIU 221 sent to fight Kaiser workers...The answer is 3, which is a lot for a local with less than 7000 members.

But the bigger news here is that Eric Banks fell for this email at all...

How many organizers have you sent us? We need more staff/members down up here asap! Unless you want to work as a field rep in Oklahoma I'd suggest you stop fucking around down there and get us some people.

Call me today.

Dave Regan

(xxx) xxx-8399

______________________

Hilarious, but not that convincing...unless you are Eric Banks. His response:

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Erika is a TruCorps staffer currently assigned to Kaiser San Jose, though she appears to have gotten her start in faux-unionism at the former SEIU 790.

Not only is Erika a Zombie, she is a blogger! You know how TASTY loves staff blogs and videos! Erika was blogging here--in a contest to win trips around the world. (Erika-Tasty knows what a pain in the ass spell check and grammar can be--but when entering a contest you should re-read your work! And use capital letters and shit.) Anywho, there are some real gems in this blog. For example this profound statement: .

"I am a positive face of the united states because i represent peace and what it really means to share and respect all that i see and experience."

Hmmm...That's not how Kaiser workers see Erika. Here are some of the things Tasty has heard about Erika:

"Sometimes Erika breaks the law by intimidating workers, telling them they'll lose their contract if they support NUHW".

At other times she uses what she thinks are her physical charms to entice the support of male members. Recently, the elevator door on the 4th Floor opened to reveal PT mobility worker and Erika. Erika scrambled out blushing. "When she was gone, the PT mobility worker, who was terrified and white-as-a-sheet, mind you, said, 'Damn, and I though Doug Jones (SEIU Rep) was pushy.'"

On Thursday, Erika colluded with EVS management to target NUHW supporter John Gott for discipline. " John had been proudly wearing his NUHW t-shirt. That was just too much for Erika to tolerate on the day Kaiser members began casting their votes here in San Jose. Erika ratted John out to his boss, telling the boss that John was in violation of the EVS department's dress-code."

In one fell-swoop, Erika "Kapo" Minkowsky managed to:1) get Kaiser to help her campaign for SEIU by trying and failing to hide the Red-Tide that's surging in EVS, and2) violate the Union's legal obligations under Duty of Fair Representation (DFR).!

All in a day's work for a Zombie!

And some members note that Erika likes to brag about the time she's spent in Latin America. They report that her Spanish is fairly on point grammatically--but her accent is painful to listen to. Might Tasty suggest more Spanish lessons and less GETTING MEMBERS DISCIPLINED?

Friday, September 17, 2010

I was elected by my co-workers to be a steward in theRichmond Lab in May of this year. Since that time, it hasbecome clear that the priority of SEIU-UHW is not the wellbeing of its Kaiser members. Time after time, they have madeit abundantly clear that their focus is not where it should be:

• SEIU – UHW staff who promise to provide copies of our contract for the members andthen fail month after month to deliver those contracts; and

• SEIU – UHW staff who tell the stewards that it is their job to get members to wear proSEIU-UHW stickers, but who fail to provide the support necessary to handle everydaygrievances and work-site issues.

They have not allowed me to do the job my co-workers elected me to do – making sure thatwe enforce the contract and insure that no harm comes to our co-workers.

A union stops being a union when those who run the union put their personal interestsbefore those of the members – those who pay their salaries. SEIU-UHW is no longer myunion – that is why I have chosen to resign my position as shop steward.

Please join me in voting for NUHW – a union of the members, a union by the members,and a union for the members.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Kaiser South San Francisco has an "organizer" named Jake Decker. Jake is a failed regional coordinator for "Change that Works" the SEIU front group that was supposed to organize in swing states for EFCA and Public Option Healthcare Legislation. (Great work on that, btw.) Tasty hears from some past Change that Works staff that Jake was a particular failure in his role...

And what do they do with failures at SEIU? They send 'em to clean up Stern's mess in California!

Sadly for SEIU Jake has no skillz...but he does have an i-phone! In fact, when he runs into a Kaiser workers he demands their emplyee ID, calls up their info on his phone and calculates what their raises would be under the SEIU contract (or not for those who are laid off...). Beyond that he pulls up the home address and personal information of each member!

Additionaly, Tasty hears that he stares at female Kaiser leaders, taking pictures, staring at them in the break room, following them through the hallways...Intimidation much? Tasty guesses that is easier than actually dealing with the issues and organizing workers!

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Maybe they are! According to the New York Times, SEIU decided this week to support legalization of marijuana in California. "The measure, known as Proposition, 19 would legalize, regulate and tax the sale of marijuana. It has been promoted as a way to raise money for the financially beleaguered state..."

This is the plan for the public sector locals? SEIU makes the locals send money and staff to fight Kaiser workers, and then their plan for balancing the budget--and saving the thousands of public sector jobs that are at risk--is legalizing pot?

If Tasty were a SEIU city, county or state member...Tasty would not be impressed. In fact, Local 721 has HALF OF THEIR STAFF ON THE UHW FIGHT. 721 members need to hope their boss doesn't find out that the union is totally out of lunch.

Apparently, neither are the members of SEIU Local 221...from an email by Marty Kroopin who is running a reform slate against (SEIU's choosen candidate for SEIU 221 President) Eric Banks:

Our own Local 221 Union Hall staff have been "drafted" by the SEIU International headquarters officials in Washington, DC, to join the massive campaign to convince Kaiser workers to stay in SEIU and NOT vote to join the break-away union (see article below). Local 221 is short staffed already, and members are already hurting from our Worksite Organizers (Union Hall reps) having to serve more than 2000 of us members to every one Union Hall rep! The ratio SHOULD be more like 3 reps to each 2000 of us members.

No matter what we think about which candidates or which party SEIU is backing in the November general elections, this "drafting" of our Union Hall reps to do work on the Kaiser campaign -- OUTSIDE of serving us members -- is an outrageous raid on OUR local union dues funds and OUR Union Hall staff. We members of Local 221 did NOT vote to authorize this abuse of our union dues money. The incumbent President, Eric Banks, and the incumbent Executive Board SHOULD have voted "NO" and stopped the reassignment of our Union Hall staff to this Kaiser election campaign.

As ballots make their way to workers' mailboxes, SEIU is flooding Kaiser workers with food. In addition to $5 gift certificates for Starbucks, SEIU is apparently spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on everything from pizza, chicken dinners, Mexican food, cupcakes, ice cream, fresh fruit, and barbecues in an effort to buy workers' votes --- of course, all of the bribes are paid for by workers' own dues money.

Yesterday, as one worker arrived at a Kaiser clinic in Antioch, he ran into someone delivering 36 pizzas to his clinic and many more pizzas to nearby facilities. The delivery person showed him the bill: $1,100!

At Kaiser West Los Angeles Medical Center, SEIU delivered 40 pizzas to the cafeteria, where Deputy Trustee Keisha Stewart ordered SEIU organizers to distribute the pizzas to all the floors of the hospital.

At Kaiser San Francisco Medical Center, the food of choice was fruit. Today, SEIU-UHW shop stewards were being paid by Kaiser management to hold their monthly, day-long steward council meeting. But instead of handling grievances and worksite problems, the SEIU stewards spent the day walking throughout the hospital and clinics with baskets of fruit bearing SEIU stickers [see above] and campaigning for votes.

And not a whimper or objection from management. What's next? Tasty can only imagine since SEIU seems to have endless creativity when it comes to spending workers' dues dollars...

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Even though SEIU is hiring just about any random person off the street to knock on Kaiser workers' doors, SEIU is actually giving these temp workers the social security numbers, home addresses and telephone numbers of Kaiser employees!

Over the weekend, one of SEIU's temp staffers rang the doorbell of a Kaiser worker in the Bay Area, who then asked the temp staffer, "How did you get my address?"

The SEIU temp staffer then showed him his "SEIU walk sheet," which had all of the employees personal information, including his social security number.

Monday, September 13, 2010

At Kaiser Walnut Creek last Thursday, the purple T-shirt and cupcake distribution center in the cafeteria was patrolled by a number of out-of-state visitors--reportedly from as far away as New York, New Jersey and Colorado. The Coloradan seemingly in charge was Ms. Stephanie Felix, who is on loan from SEIU Local 5.

Her message of the day, to someone who approached the SEIU dis-information table, was that NUHW was planning a home-visiting blitz. All 2,000 of its staff and supporters, she said, would soon be knocking on the doors of Kaiser workers at home this past Saturday and Sunday and on into this week when the ballots go out.

NUHW? Don't you mean SEIU?

Walnut Creek workers say Stephanie has been in town for a least a month or so. So we can't attribute this bit of campaign strategy confusion to jet-lag. If Stephanie is sighted on anyone's door step in the next few days, bearing cupcakes with purple icing, one thing is certain: NUHW did not send her!

Apparently, SEIU is so desperate that they've hired U.S. Census workers from Baltimore and flown them across the country to knock on Kaiser workers' doors! How much dues money did that cost? And what do Census workers know about the health care industry?

My neighbor, a recently laid off census worker here in Baltimore,was recruited to go to CA to work for SEIU in the election against NUHW.She decided not to go, but she tells me that last Thursday, Sept. 9,several of her former co-workers left for CA for a 10 day stint with SEIU.

Isn't this an indication of a measure of desperation on SEIU's part?And how is it that SEIU had an inside track to census workers all theway across the country?

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Hey Kaiser workers, word on the street is that the Zombies were in full effect knocking on your doors this weekend. Are you wondering who the people are behind the purple shirts knocking on your front door?

Well... Tasty recently got some interesting emails (see below) in his inbox. It turns out that a good number of these people are actually temporary workers that SEIU is paying $200 a day (plus all expenses and travel) to knock on your door.

That's right... temp workers from an agency called TruCorps. Ya gotta wonder how much these temp workers actually know about Kaiser Permanente, the healthcare industry or even SEIU...

Apparently, SEIU is so desperate to hire people to harass you at your homes, that SEIU is even fronting big bucks (your dues dollars) to these temp workers before they even start working.

Check out the emails to one person who was hired after just a 15-minute interview over the phone after they responded to an SEIU advertisement on Craig's List.

Rumor has it that Pamela Kieffer, who's the wife of SEIU official Dave Kieffer, is one of the people interviewing and hiring people into temp jobs with SEIU/TruCorps. Dave works closely with TruCorps Strategic Adviser Jim Philliou, so it looks like SEIU is keeping its new temporary agency business venture all in the family. Check out the emails to applicants for the temp jobs..._______________________________________

Thank you for joining us as a campaign support staffer from September 9, 2010 to no later than October 1, 2010. This is a critical campaign for our important and pioneering work with California health care workers.

You will be traveling to California on September 9th and returning home on October 1, at the latest.

The terms of this project are as follows:

Your travel will be arranged and paid for in advance.

You will be receiving $150.00 per day plus an additional $50.00 per day as a meal per diem. Travel and training days are fully paid also.

You will be reimbursed for any fuel costs and tolls that you incur. You will need to submit your fuel and toll receipts to us via fax for reimbursement.

You must report for your first meeting at 10 a.m. on September 10th. A second notice from us will soon follow with your flight, hotel, rental car and report location details.

Please prepare for long days and variable weather in California. You'll have long days of work, mostly driving to visit specific workers, and work alone most of the day.

If you have questions before you receive your travel arrangements from our host, please contact staff support at 877-322-5829or by email at staffsupport@trucorps.com.

In order to get you started, please complete the attached paperwork and return to TruCorps by August 31, 2010. Paperwork must be completed accurately, signed, and dated and include all of the required documents.

Please also include a voided check or deposit slip if you would like direct deposit for payroll and expenses.

Note: With regard to the three-days-pay advance, a separate email will follow.

Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2010From: adminsupport@trucorps.comTo:Subject: GOTV Pay Advance - September 1, 2010Dear XXXXXXX,Given that September 9th is a couple weeks away, we are making a modest pay advance available to you now. If you agree to receive this advance, a direct deposit or check will follow on September 1, 2010.By accepting the advance, you agree that if you fail to appear in California as scheduled or if you fail to complete at least three days of work once there, you will refund the advance immediately upon request. If you do not refund the advance as required, you further agree that you will be liable for any and all related damages and expenses incurred by TruCorps or our client and that said damages will be pre-set at an amount equal to twice your gross pay rate.Sorry for the legalese. Lawyers. What are you gonna do? (Tasty's Note: Barf.)

If you need the pay advance, please simply reply to this email with: "Pay me - and I agree."

We look forward to seeing you in California.TruCorps, LLCAdministrative Support877-322-5829or 877-TRU-2825Fax 877-272-9603adminsupport@trucorps.com

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Now even SEIU staffers are objecting to the lies that SEIU is telling Kaiser workers. This email was forwarded to Tasty--this confirms what we all knew was going on in SEIU, but it sure is nice to see it in writing.

Next time, Concerned Organizer: Join the thousands of former SEIU staff and members who are brave enough and proud enough to share their names! We'll be here for ya!

This is my first job in the labor movement. I wanted to work for a union like SEIU because I thought it would be a place where I could fight for working people. But today, now that I've been in California long enough to understand what's going on, I've decided to publicly say what many other organizers I know have said privately: this is an assignment we do not believe in.

Some of us came to California reluctantly, but were assured that what SEIU is doing here is good. Instead what I've seen here is that many members do not want to be in SEIU. Many of them have very clear reasons about why they want to be in NUHW, and they're familiar with the arguments on both sides.

Meanwhile, SEIU leaders have told us to deliberately misinform Kaiser workers. We tell workers they're going to lose all of their wages and benefits if they vote for NUHW and that NUHW leaders "stole" millions of dollars from the union -- even though a little bit of research shows that both of these claims are untrue.

Recently, we were given a "rap" about the Kaiser national agreement that instructs us to keep telling workers they'll lose their wages, benefits and bonuses if they join NUHW -- even though the NLRB just ruled the opposite. Basically, we're being told to lie to workers.

When I expressed concern about this, my supervisor told me that a refusal to accept this assignment would be considered a resignation. Period. I really can't afford to lose my job right now, but I know I didn’t join the labor movement to lie to workers.

If SEIU can win this election fair and square, then so be it. But getting into bed with the boss, and manipulating workers into voting for you is something very different. I came to work for SEIU because I believe this country needs strong unions to defend working people. But how strong is the union we’re building today at SEIU? Trying to build a union with lies is like trying to build a house from sand. Soon it will crumble.

I know there are others who feel the same. If you agree with us let me know.

Friday, September 10, 2010

On Wednesday morning of this week (Sept, 8), there was a big push at Kaiser Richmond to get more purple T-shirts in circulation. Even UHW-SEIU Kaiser director Greg Maron (pictured left with his BFF Amado David) was on hand personally to distribute them. Unfortunately, neither Greg nor the full-time staff rep assigned to the facility, DeJohn Williams, were able to take much time out of their busy campaign schedules to provide assistance to two EVS workers who were called into Human Resources and fired that very morning!

A visitor approached DeJohn at SEIU’s literature table, outside the entrance to the hospital, and asked him about the status of these disciplinary cases. “You know, it’s hard to get fired at Kaiser,” DeJohn said, hinting that management might have acted with just cause. i.e. You got fired? ...Ah, you are probably guilty. Charming attitude for a staff member who should be on your side!

But rest assured. “I’m a winner,” DeJohn told the visitor. “We’re gonna win.” Win the contract grievances—yet to be filed--over the two dismissals? No, he was talking about next week’s NLRB election, not day-to-day representation of members, in the meantime.

Prior to joining the staff of UHW-SEIU, DeJohn spent more than 20 years as president of SEIU Local 265, which represents cemetery workers. Let’s hope these latest Kaiser discharge cases don’t end up dead.

Rose Floyd-Perez, an LVN at Kaiser Hayward Medical Center, resigned her position as a SEIU-UHW Shop Steward so she can support NUHW! "We need a union that fights for its members and enforces the contract. That's why I resigned as a SEIU Shop Steward at Kaiser Hayward."

Today, five SEIU-UHW Shop Stewards at Kaiser Regional Lab in N Cal announced they're supporting NUHW in next week's election. Check out their letter to co-workers:

"We, the majority of the Kaiser Regional Lab Stewards Council, have had enough. We are tired of a union which takes our dues and provides little or nothing in return. We are disgusted by SEIU's repeated attempts to manipulate us. We will not tolerate being disrespected anymore. Now is our opportunity for change. We need to take our union back. We will be voting for NUHW. We strongly urge you to vote NUHW too.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

In a major election victory, workers at Driftwood Healthcare Center Nursing Home have overwhelmingly voted to join SEIU-UHW. The Santa Cruz nursing home is the first newly organized facility to join SEIU-UHW since our trusteeship in January 2009.

"I voted for SEIU-UHW so my family can have the benefits of a better life" said Charity Bagwell, a CNA at the Santa Cruz facility.

The Grancare/Mariner owned facility stood as the only northern California nursing home in the chain that was not apart of SEIU-UHW or in it's master contract. United in SEIU-UHW, workers at the ten other Grancare/Mariner homes have secured a master-contract that provides workers with job security, protection against layoffs, safer staffing, and better wages and benefits.

This is hilarious. The contract, and the neutrality agreement that helped the workers join UHW, they refer to in the email was something the old leadership team bargained and had to fight for--because the folks at SEIU and Tyrone Freeman would have preferred giving up the "master contract" in a second! Template agreement forever! Now, they are proud of it! They will just say whatever works at the time.

And really? This is the first thing they have put in the union since January of 2009? They have lost 6000 members to decerts and another 1400 to layoffs at Kaiser and this is what they have to show for it? Oh man.

And look Tasty makes some typos, but I think they mean to say "...that was not a part of SEIU-UHW or in it's master contract." not "...that was not apart of SEIU-UHW or in it's master contract." They actually mean the opposite--great work again to the SEIU UHW communications department.

2000 SEIU staffers are in California, and are meeting in hotels all around the state to plan their attack...

Kaiser workers, beware. Here come a bunch of people from New York, Florida, and the midwest. All people who don't know any of the history of what we have gone through here in California. And they are going to saunter in to our hospitals and tell us what to do...

Let's send 'em back home as losers!

PS as always, tell Tasty what you are seeing in your facilities, and what Zombies you are meeting! tastysternburger@gmail.com

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Tasty doesn't usually talk to much about SEIU members, but this is just too much. To the left is SEIU-UHW Steward Richard Griffin who works at the Sunset Medical Center. He is also apparently a Hip Hop "artist" called "NYLA."

Check out his myspace page...and then check out the photos. You will be THRILLED to see that Richard poses with multiple guns and several different piles of crack and marijuana.

According to sources he is harassing members, threatening rival stewards at Kaiser. This would be upsetting and illegal under regular circumstances, but based on his myspace, there are real reasons to worry.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Suzie Tomicich, an SEIU-UHW Shop Steward in optical services at Kaiser Los Angeles Medical Center, resigned her SEIU steward position so she can support NUHW.

In a message to her co-workers, Suzie wrote: "First SEIU claimed we would lose everything if we voted for NUHW. Now that the federal government has exposed their lies, SEIU is siding with Kaiser management even though Kaiser broke the law. I want an honest union that has our interests at heart. That's why I resigned as an SEIU steward and I'm voting NUHW."

This just in. Former SEIU leader Alejandro Stephens was sentenced to prison today for defrauding a union-related organization in order to funnel money into his SEIU re-election campaign. Here's some background on Stephens and his role in various SEIU corruption scandals.

Stephens was a member of SEIU's International Executive Board and was the president of SEIU Local 660 in Los Angeles. In 2007, when SEIU merged Local 660 into a new mega-local called SEIU Local 721, Stephens' girlfriend Annelle Grajeda became the president of the local and Stephens got a $180,000 golden handshake from SEIU's DC officials.

In 2008, Andy Stern nominated Grajeda and Dave Regan to become SEIU International Executive Vice Presidents, one of the highest national positions inside SEIU. It's the same position that Mary Kay Henry held until she got boosted to the presidency. In 2009, Grajeda was forced to resign her position as an SEIU EVP after the LA Times uncovered a second corruption scandal in which Grajeda allegedly helped funnel tens of thousands of dollars to her boyfriend Stephens.

SEIU officials didn't fire Grajeda (after all, she was only charged with ripping off SEIU's own members) but instead gave her a top job in SEIU's national office with the SEIU Secretary-Treasurer (and she is maybe retired?)

Grajeda got the same kind of deal as another SEIU insider and IEB member, Rickman Jackson, who stole more than $30,000 from SEIU members while serving as the appointed president of an SEIU local in Michigan. Rickman had been appointed to the presidency of the local by SEIU's DC officials.

The US Department of Justice's indictment against Stephens names Grajeda as a "co-schemer" in the criminal conspiracy for which Stephens will now do jail time. Apparently, she may be next one on the DOJ's list...and why does Tasty think that? Well, Alejandro was supposed to be sentenced a number of times earlier this year--but each time the hearing got postponed.

Why? Too many Lindsay Lohan cases for the courts?

Nope! A little birdie tells Tasty that Stephens is naming names to the FBI. In fact, FBI agents have been visiting SEIU officials at home...

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

On Monday, SEIU-UHW Shop Steward Brian Jones resigned his steward position at Kaiser Hayward to support NUHW.

Brian, who has worked as a PCT at the hospital for 12 years, wrote a letter to his co-workers: “We are stronger with NUHW. That's why I resigned as a SEIU Shop Steward... It’s time to address staffing, conversions, and job eliminations. We had a powerful Union before SEIU's trusteeship, and I want to restore our Voice. Join me in voting for NUHW!”

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